Sachin Soni, 29, Kamaljeet Singh, 26, and Ajay Pal Singh, 28, are developing their startup company Second Light, an open platform that facilitates data exchange to improve experience in elder care.

The platform provides doctors and caregivers a way to manage a patient's health and gives the patient tools that allow for social connections with other seniors, friends and family members.

"Social media has changed the way we live," Soni said. "We often assume that elderly individuals are unwilling to acclimate to a technological platform, but that's not true. The reality is that they appreciate technology the same as the rest of us."

Soni, an engineer by trade, met his two cohorts in 2004 while they were all attending the National Institute of Technology in Jalandhar, India.

The three friends, all from small towns in India, had to rely on technology to keep in touch with their families. But it was difficult for their parents and grandparents, who were unaccustomed to using technology, to operate some of the communication platforms.

After college, Soni was living in Mumbai when an idea came to him, and he decided that he had to do something. Being from a family of doctors, Soni said it was only natural for him to develop an idea that centered on health care.

He presented his idea for Second Light to his friends, and they all began working on the concept.

"We are all in the same boat," Ajay Pal Singh said. "It's always a challenge. How do you Skype with your father or grandfather? We always wanted to do something that serves a purpose and improves people's lives. This is it."

The owners said each of them has taken on a specific role with the company. While they are all friends, they each bring a different perspective to the table and take full responsibility for their duties.

"We get along pretty well," Ajay Pal Singh said. "We each have our own opinions, but at the end of the day we know what the vision is. It's a lot of fun."

The owners got together last year and began putting some of their ideas down. After three months, they moved the company to Silicon Valley.

Soni said they currently are finishing up Second Light's beta 1 testing and will soon begin beta 2 testing. The owners are splitting their time between Spartanburg, India and the West Coast. Ajay Pal Singh just returned from a trip that spanned several stops in the U.S. and Chile.

The owners said their target customers initially will be assisted living and continued care facilities. The platform will be available to seniors for about $20 per month. Their family member or caregivers also can join in.

Patients have their own dashboard where they can see and set all of the features they want.

A few of those features will help keep patients on track with taking their medications, visiting their doctor or knowing when their caregiver will be there. Family members can send messages and photos, or check in on their loved one's health. Patients also can connect and converse with other seniors.

Soni said there will be a video conferencing feature that allows patients to converse with their doctor or families.

"For any person who has led a vibrant, robust life, the realities of aging can be humbling and challenging," Soni said. "It can leave a gap in their life. I think we are developing something that can help fill that."

The platform itself adapts to the design of the device being used. Since it's an open platform, other developers can develop apps for it.

The owners said that above all else they want Second Light to give hope to seniors who feel disconnected from their previous lives because they are unable to leave their rooms, beds or homes.

"That's why we chose to call it Second Light," Kamaljeet Singh said.

Soni previously served as a senior associate system engineer with IBM, a business associate and technology consultant with Tata Technologies and as a SAP consultant for Volkswagen India. He recently was married just before coming to Spartanburg to develop the concept at the Iron Yard LLC's digital health accelerator in downtown.

Kamaljeet Singh helped co-found three companies, HealthAssist, i healthcare labs and Lifeoz. He was a senior associate for Headstrong and a consultant for AT&T's Sterling Commerce.

Ajay Pal Singh is involved with Start-Up Chile, an accelerator program based in Santiago, Chile. He is also a fellow with the Startup Leadership Program in New Delhi.

He has served as a co-founder with i healthcare labs, a design engineer with STMicroelectronics, a scientist with Defence Research and Development Organisation in Bengaluru, India, and was an intern with eROCKIT GmbH.

The owners said they have enjoyed their time at the Iron Yard so far and are building relationships with the other nine teams involved in the program. They also are learning from the business leaders who have been brought in as mentors.

"We looked at it as three months versus five years on the market," Soni said.

For more information, visit: www.2nl.co.

Each Sunday, the Herald-Journal profiles one of the 10 technology startups enrolled in The Iron Yard's digital health accelerator in Spartanburg. Coming next week: Senthil Premraj of Indianapolis is developing his new wellness platform HealthPlotter that incentivizes results as opposed to participation.

<p>Three young entrepreneurs have a bright idea for how to put seniors in touch with technology.</p><p>Sachin Soni, 29, Kamaljeet Singh, 26, and Ajay Pal Singh, 28, are developing their startup company Second Light, an open platform that facilitates data exchange to improve experience in elder care.</p><p>The platform provides doctors and caregivers a way to manage a patient's health and gives the patient tools that allow for social connections with other seniors, friends and family members.</p><p>"Social media has changed the way we live," Soni said. "We often assume that elderly individuals are unwilling to acclimate to a technological platform, but that's not true. The reality is that they appreciate technology the same as the rest of us."</p><p>Soni, an engineer by trade, met his two cohorts in 2004 while they were all attending the National Institute of Technology in Jalandhar, India. </p><p>The three friends, all from small towns in India, had to rely on technology to keep in touch with their families. But it was difficult for their parents and grandparents, who were unaccustomed to using technology, to operate some of the communication platforms.</p><p>After college, Soni was living in Mumbai when an idea came to him, and he decided that he had to do something. Being from a family of doctors, Soni said it was only natural for him to develop an idea that centered on health care.</p><p>He presented his idea for Second Light to his friends, and they all began working on the concept.</p><p>"We are all in the same boat," Ajay Pal Singh said. "It's always a challenge. How do you Skype with your father or grandfather? We always wanted to do something that serves a purpose and improves people's lives. This is it."</p><p>The owners said each of them has taken on a specific role with the company. While they are all friends, they each bring a different perspective to the table and take full responsibility for their duties.</p><p>"We get along pretty well," Ajay Pal Singh said. "We each have our own opinions, but at the end of the day we know what the vision is. It's a lot of fun."</p><p>The owners got together last year and began putting some of their ideas down. After three months, they moved the company to Silicon Valley.</p><p>Soni said they currently are finishing up Second Light's beta 1 testing and will soon begin beta 2 testing. The owners are splitting their time between Spartanburg, India and the West Coast. Ajay Pal Singh just returned from a trip that spanned several stops in the U.S. and Chile.</p><p>The owners said their target customers initially will be assisted living and continued care facilities. The platform will be available to seniors for about $20 per month. Their family member or caregivers also can join in.</p><p>Patients have their own dashboard where they can see and set all of the features they want.</p><p>A few of those features will help keep patients on track with taking their medications, visiting their doctor or knowing when their caregiver will be there. Family members can send messages and photos, or check in on their loved one's health. Patients also can connect and converse with other seniors.</p><p>Soni said there will be a video conferencing feature that allows patients to converse with their doctor or families.</p><p>"For any person who has led a vibrant, robust life, the realities of aging can be humbling and challenging," Soni said. "It can leave a gap in their life. I think we are developing something that can help fill that."</p><p>The platform itself adapts to the design of the device being used. Since it's an open platform, other developers can develop apps for it.</p><p>"We wanted to keep it open," Kamaljeet Singh said. "Someone always has an idea that's better than yours. We didn't want to limit it."</p><p>The owners said that above all else they want Second Light to give hope to seniors who feel disconnected from their previous lives because they are unable to leave their rooms, beds or homes.</p><p>"That's why we chose to call it Second Light," Kamaljeet Singh said.</p><p>Soni previously served as a senior associate system engineer with IBM, a business associate and technology consultant with Tata Technologies and as a SAP consultant for Volkswagen India. He recently was married just before coming to Spartanburg to develop the concept at the Iron Yard LLC's digital health accelerator in downtown.</p><p>Kamaljeet Singh helped co-found three companies, HealthAssist, i healthcare labs and Lifeoz. He was a senior associate for Headstrong and a consultant for AT&T's Sterling Commerce.</p><p>Ajay Pal Singh is involved with Start-Up Chile, an accelerator program based in Santiago, Chile. He is also a fellow with the Startup Leadership Program in New Delhi.</p><p>He has served as a co-founder with i healthcare labs, a design engineer with STMicroelectronics, a scientist with Defence Research and Development Organisation in Bengaluru, India, and was an intern with eROCKIT GmbH.</p><p>The owners said they have enjoyed their time at the Iron Yard so far and are building relationships with the other nine teams involved in the program. They also are learning from the business leaders who have been brought in as mentors.</p><p>"We looked at it as three months versus five years on the market," Soni said.</p><p>For more information, visit: www.2nl.co.</p><p>Each Sunday, the Herald-Journal profiles one of the 10 technology startups enrolled in The Iron Yard's digital health accelerator in Spartanburg. Coming next week: Senthil Premraj of Indianapolis is developing his new wellness platform HealthPlotter that incentivizes results as opposed to participation.</p>